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Can you eat too little carbs?

healthyeating.sfgate.com - Problems With Consuming Too Few Carbohydrates

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Coupled with an increased protein intake, a low-carb diet will likely help you lose weight when you reduce your total calorie intake. However, a few problems can arise if your carb intake is too low, since carbs are the main source of energy for your body – and your mind. To avoid negative side effects associated with eating too few carbohydrates, aim to consume the recommended dietary allowance, or RDA, for carbohydrates on a daily basis.

Negative Side Effects

If you eat too few carbs, you may experience some unpleasant side effects. According to Mayo Clinic, these may include dizziness, headaches, weakness, fatigue, nutrient deficiencies, nausea, diarrhea, mental fatigue and even bad breath. Consuming your carb RDA on a daily basis can help you avoid these unwelcome side effects. But if you’re still experiencing problems, try slightly boosting your carb intake and make an appointment with your doctor to make sure your symptoms are not a sign of an underlying condition.

Long-Term Effects

There is no resounding conclusion about the long-term effects -- either positive or negative -- of a low-carbohydrate diet. One study, published in the journal "PLoS One" in 2014, found that a low-carbohydrate diet had negative metabolic effects in mice after four months. A separate study, published in 2017 in "EBioMedicine," found that human participants who followed a low-carbohydrate diet for six months did not lose as much weight as participants who ate a diet that was high in carbohydrates, but they also did not exhibit any negative cardiovascular or metabolic effects.

Effects on Athletes

Since carbohydrates are your main fuel source during exercise, consuming too few carbs can negatively impact your athletic performance. Athletes usually require more carbs than sedentary individuals. Brown University recommends athletes consume 65 percent of their calorie intake from carbs. Since carbohydrates provide 4 calories per gram, this means athletes who consume 2,000 calories a day should aim for 325 grams of carbs, and those who eat 3,000 calories a day should shoot for about 488 grams of carbs each day.

How Many Carbs Do You Need?

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